US Bridal Retailers are poised to enter the Chinese Bridal Market

When it comes time to plan their weddings, studies show the average Chinese couple outspends the average American couple by leaps and bounds-thus making the Chinese bridal market the hottest new expansion opportunity for Western bridal brands. With a fully saturated market within the US (and much of Europe), this "uncharted territory" could represent a goldmine of possible profits for our already successful US designers.

The year 2015 saw a record-breaking Chinese wedding in that of actress and model Angelababy and actor Huang Xiaoming. The young couple spent 31 million dollars, a mere 3 million less than the most recent British Royal wedding. While the Chinese are not the only non-Western marketplace which exerts large amounts of effort and capital on their weddings (India also has an enormous wedding market) the Chinese are different in that they will mix their beautiful ancient traditions with new Western ones, thus creating enormous opportunity for our big bridal players to outfit their brides.

Although the market is limited to certain segments, it is relatively untapped. The average Chinese bride is wearing 3-4 gowns for their day of events and is eager to learn more about new traditions that they can make their own. A smaller marketplace, that yields more sales per customer creates a major clienteling challenge, but also a major opportunity. Stay tuned for a large movement, akin to the Gold Rush of 1849 as brands create outposts, set up teams and scramble for their take of the spoils.